Barjack Rhapsody
is the fourth and final side story. It was the last to be published and is the only one set during Last Order. Cover Koyomi and the false Den. Plot A dazed Koyomi comes to amidst the flames of a burning convoy and calls out for Den, who looms above her brandishing Zanshato. As he begins to walk away, Koyomi tries to follow him but is caught by an explosion. The story flashes back to three days ago. Koyomi drops by the office of a Scrapyard newspaper, the ScrewHead Times, where the chief editor rejects her latest batch of photos. Although she broke the scoop of the deal reached between Vector and Kaos, he is adamant and refuses to fall for Koyomi's scheming. He tells her to become a pro, which is the key to success regardless of one's background. Tanaka, a reporter, then bursts in and reveals that Den was sighted in the north, ambushing convoys. This leads to a story on Den's sighting being run. As Koyomi leaves she thinks that photography would be easy and that Den cannot have returned, as she witnessed his death. She decides to chase the story down herself to get the exclusive. As the caravan Koyomi is traveling with heads into the night, two of her fellow travelers ask her if she is Koyomi, and reveal that they are former Barjack soldiers who recognized her from a photo of her and Fury that B.B. Buick had taken and sold. The two veterans are also going to see if the Den sightings are real, and Koyomi learns that he once appeared twice on two different battlefields that were hundreds of kilometers away from each other. This gave rise to the rumor that a double of Den existed, as well as some wilder theories. As she drifts off to sleep, Koyomi imagines riding into battle against Tiphares and the Scrapyard again with Den and the Barjack. She is then suddenly thrown from her trailer as the convoy comes under attack by Den. The two former Barjack get his attention, but are unexpectedly killed by him. Koyomi calls out to him but is caught up in an explosion. She wakes up bandaged and inside a shack, where an old cyborg greets her. Koyomi tries to leave, but falls down and meets the cyborg's dog, who begins to lick her. The old man reveals that her camera was so damaged that he dismantled it, identifying it as the Proximus MTG Mark II. However it will take some time to get the needed replacement parts. He tells her to get some rest as Den has not appeared lately and pulls out a , offering to trade it with Koyomi fro the Proximus. Koyomi is furious and the old man tells her that the Proximus is not the best camera for her, challenging her to a photo contest. He takes her outide near a stream and uses the point-and-shoot to capture some remarkable photos of fish, ducks, and dragonflies. When Koyomi tries to photograph Chavez, his dog, she fails. The two continue the contest in the following days, during which the old man, who is named Geriperi, deliberately distracts Koyomi when she tries to shoot. When she complains, he asks her what she hopes to accomplish with such haste. That night he asks her what she plans to do when she meets Den. Koyomi at first mentions getting her exclusive before breaking down in tears as she realizes that her life now has no meaning and that she believes that Den holds the answer for her. Geriperi steps outside his shack and asks Den how he would reply to her. Ten days later Koyomi is healed, but still waiting for her camera to be repaired. After getting some apples and on her way back to Geriperi's shack, it is destroyed in front of her by a missile. She is then kidnapped and finds herself greeted by the manager of Farm 3, Eakins. He states that he has a lot to discuss with Koyomi and reveals a duplicate body of Den that has a cockpit in its torso. He and his men used this body to attack merchant convoys and killed Geriperi when he tried to blackmail them. They had found the boy two months ago, but their success attracted the attention of numerous former Barjack, who have been heading to the area. They decided to hold a revival meeting at Farm 3 in ten days, which they will need Koyomi's support to pull off. However their goal is turn this new Barjack into a bandit organisation. Koyomi agrees to help. The date for the revival meeting at Farm 3 is set for August 15, drawing scores of Barjack. Back in the Scrapyard Vector is concerned about the possible revival of the Barjack, but Kaos is confident that the impostors will eventually slip up. The Factory is not back up to full capacity, which they are keeping a secret to try to maintain order. Kaos has not yet been able to get in contact with Tiphares and it would be best to avoid a confrontation. Back at Farm 3 Koyomi is coaching Den's pilot and asks to change the script that Eakins and his men had prepared without any knowledge of the real Den. She decides to go through with the deception, but questions what she has turned into. The night before the meeting Chavez appears outside her window with her repaired camera and a note from Geriperi. In it he tells her to keep the fee as an endorsement for her future breakthrough and entrusts Chavez to her. On the morning of August 15 a vast horde of Barjack have arrived at Farm 3, throwing Eakins and his men into a panic. By contrast Koyomi is cool and collected and rallies them, realizing that if all goes well she could gain control of the Barjack. The meeting starts as Koyomi arrives onstage and greets the assembled Barjack. After telling them that the Barjack has not surrendered to Tiphares, she brings forth Den. But instead of one, there are two Dens, one armed with Zanshato and the other with a yari. The second Den assumes a combat stance and is attacked by the fake, but blocks his attacks, asking what he hopes to accomplish with such haste. Koyomi recognizes these as Geriperi's words. The scene then flashes back to Geriperi inside a cave asking Den allow him to break the oath he made and assume his identity again due to Eakins' machinations. As he stands up and removes his cloak, it is revealed that his real body is a highly specialized cyborg design with a large plug in his back which he had kept secret from Koyomi. Back at Farm 3 Geriperi's piloting of Den is far superior to that of Eakins' man, as he disarms, then trips the impostor to force him onto his back. Swinging his yari around, he plunges it into the false Den's chest, destroying the cockpit. He then surveys his audience and wonders what Den would say to them. Through the voice of Den Geriperi tells the assembled Barjack that the end of Tiphares' tyranny will come through the hammer, not the gun. He tells them to go to the Scrapyard and assist with the construction of the Tower of Tiphares before dismissing them. He then looks at Koyomi and tells her to keep the fee as his endorsement for her future breakthrough. Koyomi agrees and takes a photo of Den as he walks away, taking the first step towards finding her purpose. Debut appearances Characters *Chavez *Eakins *Geriperi *ScrewHead Times chief editor *Tanaka Companies *ScrewHead Times Events *Barjack revival meeting Locations *Farm 3 *Geriperi's shack Trivia *The is a type of genre. *Chavez later appears in the main story, making him the only character introduced in the side stories to do so.Phase 87 References Category:Gunnm: Another Stories